Matthew Rushing moves like butter. He blends beautifully in any group, but as a soloist has a presence that simply rocks. During his 18-year tenure at Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, he has shone in such works as Ailey's Revelations, A Song for You, Blues Suite, Pas de Duke, Reflections in D, to name only a few.
You see it everywhere in contemorary and modern choreography. It's the "wow" step that takes you from standing to the floor with just a simple bend of the knees: the hinge.
When they're out on tour, the dancers in Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater end every show performing Revelations. Would that we could all end each day watching it. For there are moments in Alvin Ailey's 1960 work that are as close to perfection as dance gets.
Michelle Obama has often joked that she, President Obama, and their two daughters, Sasha and Malia, "live above the store." But one could also compare the White House to a beehive where, upon Mrs. Obama's encouragement, young creative talents are invited to cross-pollinate on the East Room stage.
Today, the U.S. Center for Citizen Diplomacy anounced the seven recipients of it's 2010 National Awards for Citizen Diplomacy. Honorees are recognized for their extraordinary work to increase American citizen engagement in international affairs and their outstanding contributions in fostering cross-sultural understanding.
It is my last night in Cardiff before heading to Bradford and I have to say, Cardiff was lovely. We had great weather, great audiences and did I mention the shopping? :-) Plymouth’s weather was also amazing. I’m not a fan of the cold so we'd really lucked out. During the two days we were there, I had to take off my jacket and sweater because it was so warm!
The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater is currently on tour in the UK. It will be the last time it tours here under the stewardship of one of America's leading dancers and directors, Judith Jamison, who promises something unusual for her swansong.
"We could hear you, a little bit, upstairs," Michelle Obama said, one day last month, to the eighty children pulling down their leotard elastics over their small rear ends in the East Room of the White House. When she walked onstage, what looked like eighty children took pictures of her with their cell phones.
Jamar Roberts saw the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater perform in his home city of Miami just once - but it was enough for him to know this was the company for him. Jamar, now aged 27, began dancing when he was just ten years old, but initially saw it as a hobby rather than a career option.
We have officially one city down on our UK tour. Let me say, London, you were on fire and thank you, because the beginning of a tour is always harder than the rest. Your applause motivated me through tough times, and I loved that, at every performance, before the final curtain came up, the crowd would roar with enthusiasm. Such a great feeling!